Paris — Cigarette in one hand and cup of tea in the other, Matisyahu sat down with JTA in his closet-sized dressing room during his European tour to talk about his life, his music, how he’s raising his kids, and the recent changes in his religious outlook and physical appearance.

Miri Ben-Ari is nothing if not enthusiastic. In conversation the word she uses most frequently is “fantastic.” It’s the word that comes up repeatedly when you ask the Grammy-winning Israeli violinist about the concert appearance she is making in New York on Feb. 20 to kick off a multi-city tour.

Creating a new symphony orchestra is an involved process. There’s more to it than just finding a bunch of musicians and some sheet music. Doing it with young artists adds complications. Consciously imposing a socio-political agenda would seem to make it nearly impossible.